NEWS
Follow UsIDream Tiruppur Tamizhans defeated SKM Salem Spartans by 51 runs in Match 20 of the TNPL 2024 in Tirunelveli on July 21 (Sunday).
IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans got off to a flying start after opting to bat first, with Amit Sathvik and Tushar Raheja adopting an aggressive approach right from the outset. The opening pair forged a formidable partnership of 110 runs. Amit Sathvik, promoted to opening the innings, led the charge initially by scoring a well-crafted 50 off 39 balls before departing.
Despite losing back-to-back wickets after Amit Sathvik's dismissal, Tushar Raheja anchored the innings brilliantly to finish with 79 runs from 49 balls, guiding the team to 192/9 in their allotted 20 overs. The wicket-keeper is also the current orange cap holder of the season.
In response, SKM Salem Spartans faced an uphill task of chasing the mammoth target for victory. Their chase got off to a rocky start as P Bhuvaneswaran made an immediate impact, dismissing S Abishiek in the opening over. Muhammed Adnan Khan, promoted to open the innings, was dismissed cheaply by T Natarajan in just the second over, which further dented Salem's hopes.
The situation turned worse from bad for Salem as Mohamed Ali removed the crucial wickets of Robin Bist and Vivek R, leaving the team reeling at 22/5 within the powerplay.
Salem appeared to have lost their footing after losing their top-order batters early in the innings. The southpaw, Vishal Vaidhya, then displayed resilience, adding 35 runs off 27 balls. However, their struggle continued as Mohamed Ali intervened again to dismiss him. The spinner eventually finished with 3/10 in his three overs.
In the end, valuable contributions from the lower order, particularly Ravi Rajan's unbeaten 53* off 39 balls and Harish Kumar's 32 off 21 balls, helped Salem Spartans reach a respectable total of 141/8 runs in their 20 overs.
With this victory, IDream Tiruppur Tamizhans advances to the points table, rising to sixth place with two wins from their five matches. Meanwhile, SKM Salem Spartans stay rooted at the bottom of the table with just one win from six appearances. Their hopes of making it to the playoffs are all but over.
Salem Spartans captain Shijit Chandran expressed his thoughts after the loss: We could have done better. We gave away 20-30 runs more. The plan before the match was to check out the bench strength, and Guru Sayee turned out to be the biggest positive of the game.
The player of the match, Mohamed Ali, said: "We plan everything before the game. The credit goes to the batters for giving us a huge total to defend. Our captain, Sai Kishore, has consistently supported and backed me."
The winning captain, Sai Kishore, said: "Tushar and Amit provided us with a fantastic start. Frankly, our batters could have added 20-30 more runs, and we'll focus on improving this. Overall, it was a solid performance."
After the loss, Salem's Harish Kumar said: "We failed to capitalize on small things, which proved costly throughout the season for us. Kavin had a niggle in his knee. His absence had a significant impact here, as he usually gives a good start."
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